Baked Ideas

Catface Cupcakes… An Unexpected Baked Idea

Patti Paige — Wed, 23 May 2012 20:35:24 +0000

Yesterday we were working on a big project, which included making heart-shaped cupcakes using this method. When we looked at the baked cupcakes we thought they looked so much like cat faces with ears that we had to try it out! With lots of candy sitting around the studio, it was hard to resist… so we played around on a couple of cupcakes and loved the results! (The yellow one also reminds us of Pacman).

Here’s the baked cupcake. Doesn’t this look so much like a kitty already?

Frost the cupcakes with readymade or homemade buttercream frosting.
Next, decorate the cat’s face with anything you like. Here’s what we used…
Licorice and rainbow striped Airhead Sour Belts for whiskers, dragees and chocolate cheerios for eyes, chocolate jimmies or sprinkles for the mouth, pink candy-coated sunflower seeds for the nose, and round pink sprinkles for ears.

We used small scissors to cut the triangle shapes for the ears and to make the white cat’s whiskers.
For the whiskers, we cut out a triangle of Airhead Sour Belt. Then, we snipped along one side of the triangle to make flaps and cut away every other flap. Make one for the left whisker and one for the right.

Purrfect!

Solar System Cake for Brooke

Patti Paige — Fri, 11 May 2012 21:53:05 +0000

Recently I was asked by the non profit organization Icing Smiles to make a fifth birthday cake for a very special little girl named Brooke. Icing Smiles provides cakes for kids and families that have been impacted by a critical illness. When I first got the request, I looked at pictures and videos of Brooke, and I was sure she would ask for a pink, frilly, and fairy-like cake. To my surprise what she asked for was a strawberry-flavored solar system cake to go with her outer space themed party. She even knew that she wanted no fake planets, the asteroid belt, and the ex-planet Pluto.

Brooke’s Solar System Cake… made with cake pop planets, raisin asteroids, and a giant 10″ sun cake that floated above the board with real lights.

Brooke’s a really cool kid, and we’re so happy we could be a part of her birthday celebration!

An Old-Fashioned Gadget

Patti Paige — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:21:41 +0000

I’ve been collecting these metal thingamajigs for a while, coming across them at yard sales. I guessed that they were for beating eggs, but really, I just like the way they look.

Last summer when I came across one, I finally asked what it was for…

Easter Archives

Patti Paige — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 21:07:54 +0000

A Fun Petit Four Project for Brides Magazine

Patti Paige — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 22:11:08 +0000

These petit fours remind us a little of silly Easter bonnets…

… back when stamps cost 25 cents!!

Patti Paige — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 22:20:58 +0000

Cookies and Cake with the Barefoot Contessa

Patti Paige — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 20:59:53 +0000

[Ark cake on location at The Museum of Natural History]

A while ago I made a cake for Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa, to present at a 500 person gala in the Whale Room at the Museum of Natural History. The cake was commissioned to celebrate the 100th birthday of the Animal Medical Center (AMC).

[3d model of cake concept]

Ina chose the theme –Noah’s Ark. I though it would be fun if the cake included only animals that are actually treated at AMC … in other words, any animal that fits into a NYC taxi!

[working on the cookies]

Ina and I wanted to keep the cake simple and informal – no fondant or fancy sugar work – so I frosted the cake with buttercream and ganache, and decorated with sugar cookies. Even the roof and the plank the animals walked up were cut out of cookie dough.

[ Kate helping with cake]

[back of cake]

[on site with the whale]

We also made 500 hand painted cat and dog cookies as party favors – and tied them with Barefoot Contessa ribbon for the event.

[dog cookie party favors]

In April, Ina invited me to her barn in East Hampton to be to be a guest on one of her tv episodes – How The Cookie Crumbles. I demonstrated how I ice and decorate a really simple dog cookie and Ina did it along with me. It was fun!!

(Click here to see part one of the video)

(Click here to see part two of the video)

[on set with Ina]

[The End]

Sneak peek

Patti Paige — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 20:47:00 +0000

Recent cakes by Dena Paige-Fischer with Baked Ideas.

These custom designed dog portraits are cut out from white chocolate fondant and hand painted with edible color. The cakes are covered with either white chocolate fondant, ganache, or buttercream. Available soon at www.bakedideas.com (she does people too!)

Cookie of the week!

Patti Paige — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 20:32:00 +0000

Dog and kitty cookies atop a yummy old-fashion yellow layer cake filled and iced with semi-sweet chocolate ganache!

Photo by: Susanna Blavarg

COOKIE OF THE WEEK (Staff Favorite)

Patti Paige — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 20:36:00 +0000

These airplane cookies are flying to Florida for a birthday party.